Basking in the afterglow

Sincere thanks to everyone who came out for CineKink: San Francisco! It's always nice to sell out a show, but even moreso when the crowd is so enthusiastic and involved.

It was also a treat having so much talent in the house, with Midori taking time out of her busy Rope Dojo weekend to make an appearance after Silken Sleeves, and filmmakers Westland Armitage, Tanya Bezreh, Steve Gatlin, Michelle Johnson and Madison Young joining us for some compelling post-screening discussions.

And we'll be headed home with more wonderful new blurbs for the collection!

CineKink: The thinking person's traveling erotic film fest - Violet Blue, Open Source Sex
I’m so very excited that CineKink is this weekend here in San Francisco — and the refined, indy, edgy traveling eroto-porn film fest might be coming to a major city near you. If it does, don't miss it.

Rated X-static - Michael Fox, SF Weekly
An orgy of celebration more than titillation, the six programs shine a flattering light on real people and real sex, with an endearing splash of art and humor.

CineKink: More Flavor - Flavorpill
Whether you're crazy for leather, proudly polyamorous, or you just like to watch, CineKink's popular, perverse film series educates while it titillates.

Thanks again to Joel Shepard, Calvin Souther and everyone else at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts. See you next year!

Sweet!

While we generally prefer to think of Sundance as the PG-13 rated CineKink, we're always a sucker for the sight of our name in print, plus an opportunity to wax rhapasodic about our favorite subject... kinky cinema!

Have Highbrow Porn, Will Travel
Violet Blue investigates CineKink, the X-rated Sundance - SF Gate
... they do make good porn; it's just not terribly easy to find amid all the noise and hype, online and off -- let alone the kind of erotic cinema that film fans would dig (or get off to). That's where Lisa Vandever comes in. A producer and consultant with more than fifteen years' experience in film and television, Vandever founded the nationally touring, sexually explicit (and very popular) film festival CineKink in 2002. The festival selects, awards and tours sex-positive, edgy and, especially, arousing film and television selections from mainstream porn to indies, Hollywood and beyond.

Read more...

Thanks, Violet!

California here we come...

We look forward to hooking up with old friends and meeting some new, as we venture west this week for...

CineKink: San Francisco!
Yerba Buena Center for the Arts
701 Mission Street, SF

July 10-12, 2008

Thursday, July 10th - 7:00 pm
SILKEN SLEEVES
Director Maria Beatty has created an evocative journey through four seasons of domination and submission, one in which fetish icon Midori, by turns playful and cruel, captures and binds the delicate Mayan, whose struggles avail her nothing in the presence of such rope-wielding expertise. (Winner - Audience Choice Award for Best Experimental Feature/CineKink 2008) Plays with the short, A DOG'S TALE, a black-and-white reverie on control and submission, longing and desire.
Midori will be on hand for a post-screening discussion.


Thursday, July 10th - 9:00 pm
SUSAN FOR NOW
A first-person account of a woman reclaiming her sexual freedom after a ten-year period of self-imposed celibacy, this documentary follows filmmaker Robin Franzi's personal quest through the sex-positive community in Seattle and into the world of sadomasochism. A vivid and unflinching exploration, the film also provides insights into the hearts and minds of articulate individuals from every walk of life, and how they practice BDSM in a consensual and responsible manner. Plays with the shorts F/F, a look at the Folsom Street Fair, and THE GAY LEATHERMAN, a romp through the streets (and dungeons) of Oslo, Norway.

Friday, July 11th - 7:00 pm
"Mix, Match & Mingle"
Two-somes, three-somes, four-somes and more-somes, this round-up of shorts looks at the delights - and some dilemmas - of moving beyond monogamy. With subjects ranging from a sumptuous orgy to the initial forays of a couple exploring the swing world to a few libidinous gerbils, the program includes: PLEASURE ME, PAC MOUSE, SALT, THREE IN THE MORNING, THE PARTY, DREAM TANGO, THE BIG BLUE, WRITERS & ROCKSTARS, WASH ME CLEAN, HIGH INFIDELITY and WILDEST DREAMS.

Friday, July 11th - 9:00 pm
"Give & Take"
Assume the position! A kinky collection of shorts that probe, prod and play with the dynamics of sexual power and release, control and submission. Somehow incorporating one man's fixation with lemons, the intimate thoughts of a woman newly exploring her kink, a couple struggling to the keep the passion alive and a fantastical S/M musical comedy, the program includes: IN YER ROOM, LEMON SQUEEZY, NEUROTICA, COMING OUT SPANKO, ANONYMITY, NAMAHA MAN, MARRIED WITH CHILDREN and WHO'S THE TOP?

Saturday, July 12th - 7:00 pm
TRIPLE X SELECTS: THE BEST OF LEZSPLOITATION
An international feast of lezsploitation from the 1960s and '70s in all of its notoriously twisted glory. Accented by music reflecting the era and featuring a wacked-out scientific commentary, Michelle Johnson has compiled selections from over twenty films, bringing together and re-appropriating Swedish wildcats, Italian lesbionic nuns, frisky inmates in South American prisons, Euro vampires - and a vast assortment of other Sapphic grindhouse frolics. Plays with the smutty short DIRTY WORDS: THE LETTER C, along with PILLOW GIRL and HIGHWAY AMAZON.

Saturday, July 12th - 9:00 pm
"The Best of CineKink / 2008"
A special screening of hot shorts deemed the very best of CineKink. The jury-selected awards were determined during the latest run of CineKink NYC, which took place February 26-March 2, 2008. Program includes: TEAT BEAT OF SEX, OFFICE MOBIUS, SALT, COMING OUT SPANKO, CROSSING, SOMETHING ABOUT NADIA and WHO'S THE TOP?

If you're feeling overwhelmed by indecision in the face of so much kinky potential, the lovely Violet Blue has already made her selections.

Our recommendation? Just go with it all!

























(Midori & Mayan, Silken Sleeves)

CineKink NYC Photo Round-Up

Lest we take as long with getting these photos out as we spent on finally putting together our wedding album, herewith a few images from CineKink NYC 2008!

First up, from photographic phenom Stacie Joy, some shots of the CineKink Kick-Off Gala.


Lux Alptraum and Molly Crabapple


JZ Bich, Dizzy Swank, Cherry Bomb, Ignacio Rivera

Here's more of the set - or visit filmmaker Leah Meyerhoff's blog for another vantage.

And a few candids from around the festival taken by Viviane for Viviane's Sex Carnival:



Boymeat and Lolita Wolf


Cory Silverberg, Jamye Waxman & Candida Royalle

And back to Stacie Joy, for still more of the CineKink scene:


Tanya Bezreh and Rachel Kramer Bussel


CineKink's "Women Behind the Lens" panel

Including proof positive for the parents back home, no neglect - our birthday was celebrated indeed!


Lisa Vandever's birthday!

And the award goes to...

As promised - though slightly delayed by the lingering and distracting effects of our Afterglow - a variety of CineKink NYC awards were announced at our awards celebration on Sunday night!

AUDIENCE CHOICE AWARDS - "CineKink Choice"
CineKink Choice awards, which go to feature-length works in competition during the festival, were determined by audience balloting at the close of each eligible work's screening. The 2008 award winners are:

CineKink Choice Award for Best Documentary Feature:
"Call Me Troy" (Scott Bloom, 2007, USA, 100 minutes)

CineKink Choice Award for Best Narrative Feature:
"Viva" (Anna Biller, 2006, USA, 120 minutes)

CineKink Choice Award for Best Experimental Feature:
"Silken Sleeves" (Maria Beatty, 2006, USA, 50 minutes)

CineKink Choice Award - Honorable Mention:
"Triple X Selects: The Best of Lezsploitation"
(Michelle Johnson, 2007, USA, 48 minutes)


JURY AWARD FOR BEST SHORTS - "CineKink Best"
CineKink Best awards, which go to short works in competition during the festival, were determined by jury deliberation and ranking. The 2008 award winners are:

CineKink Best Narrative Short:
"Who's the Top?" (Jennie Livingston, 2005, USA, 22 minutes)

CineKink Best Documentary Short:
"Coming Out Spanko" (Tanya Bezreh, 2008, USA, 15 minutes)

CineKink Best Animated Short:
"Teat Beat of Sex" (Signe Baumane, 2007, USA, 4 minutes)

CineKink Best Experimental Short:
"Closer" (Aitor Echeverria, 2007, Spain, 7 minutes)
-tie-
"Salt" (Campbell Farquhar, 2006, New Zealand, 3 minutes)

Honorable Mention/Best Experimental Short:
"Crossing" (HP Comings, 2007, USA, 19 minutes)

CineKink Honorable Best Mentions:
"Office Mobius" (Seung Hyung Lee & Seungil Hwang, 2007, USA, 5 minutes)
"Something About Nadia" (Erika Lust, 2007, Spain, 21 minutes)
"Wash Me Clean" (Michael Immerman, 2008, USA, 30 minutes)

This year's jury included Thor Stockman, creator and presenter of the popular film clip program "S/M at the Movies," Viviane, ring-leader of the sex blog, "Viviane's Sex Carnival, and Bill Woods, a film festival programmer and curator of the New Filmmakers series at Anthology Film Archives.


SPECIAL FESTIVAL AWARD FOR ARTISTIC INNOVATION - "CineKink Select"
"Schwarzwald" (Richard Kimmel, 2007, USA, 59 minutes)


FESTIVAL AWARD FOR EXTRAORDINARY DEPICTION OF KINK & SEX IN MAINSTREAM FILM & TELEVISION - "CineKink Tribute"
Recognizing extraordinary depiction of kink and sex in mainstream film and television, the annual CineKink Tribute was presented to:

"Shortbus" (2006, USA, 106 minutes)
Director: John Cameron Mitchell
Screenwriter: John Cameron Mitchell
Cast: Sook-Yin Lee, Paul Dawson, Lindsay Beamish, PJ DeBoy, Raphael Barker, Jay Brannan, Peter Stickles and Justin Bond.
Producers: Howard Gertler, John Cameron Mitchell and Tim Perell
Executive Producer: Wouter Barendrecht and Alexis Fish
Distributor: ThinkFilm

CineKink Tribute Honorable Mentions (aka The CineKink Nod):
"Lust, Caution" (Focus Features)
"The Oprah Winfrey Show - 237 Reasons to Have Sex"
"Zoo" (ThinkFilm)

Many thanks and congratulations to this year's CineKink award winners - and to all of our uber-talented filmmakers!

Activism, exploration and a girl-girl double-header!

Really, what else is there?

Up at CineKink tonight, first at 7 pm, from CineKink award-winner Scott Bloom ("Original Pride" Audience Choice, CineKink/2005), it's the New York premiere of CALL ME TROY, an inspirational and moving tribute to gay activist and spiritual leader, Reverend Troy Perry. Perhaps best known as the founder of the Metropolitan Community Church - the first church to recognize the spiritual needs of the gay community - Perry has long been on the front lines in leading the charge for equality and protections for all. And, a proud leatherman, he's also been an unwavering proponent for the God-given right to embrace and explore our sexuality - just exactly as we are.

More info and tickets!




Friday/9:15
At 9:15 PM, SUSAN FOR NOW is a first-person account of a woman reclaiming her sexual freedom after a ten-year period of self-imposed celibacy. Following the filmmaker's personal quest through the sex-positive community in Seattle and into the world of sadomasochism, the film also provides insights into the hearts and minds of articulate and sincere individuals from every walk of life, and how they practice BDSM in a consensual and responsible manner. Also playing is THE LEATHERMAN, in which Norwegian S/M activist Svein Skeid takes to the streets (and dungeons) of Oslo, and the world premiere of F/F, a visit to Folsom Street and beyond with three-time-CineKink alum, Charles Lum!

More info and tickets!



Friday/11:15
And at 11:15 PM, it's SEX MANNEQUIN and SUPERFREAK, a shape-shifting, body-swapping double-header of girl-girl adventures. First up, from Maria Beatty, a mannequin comes alive to the stroke and kiss of her mistress, ready to passionately serve - and to take - in a variety of kinky ways. And then, from Shine L. Houston, the lascivious spirit of a certain funk singer crashes a girl-girl party, inhabiting the bodies of its participants and creating much erotic mayhem.

More info and tickets!

Hey, kids, it's exploitation night!

We're just getting started - still plenty of time to jump on board – and tonight at CineKink it’s a hot double-bill of steamy exploitation!

First up on Thursday, at 7:00 pm, it's TRIPLE X SELECTS: THE BEST OF LEZSPLOITATION, an international feast of lesbian-exploitation highlights from the 1960s and '70s, presented in all of their notoriously twisted glory. Accented by music reflecting the era and featuring a wacked-out scientific commentary, a compilation of selections from over twenty films brings together and re-appropriates Swedish wildcats, Italian lesbionic nuns, frisky inmates in South American prisons, Euro vampires - and a vast assortment of other Sapphic grindhouse frolics. Plays with the kinky shorts PILLOW GIRL and HIGHWAY AMAZON, along with the world premiere of three-time-CineKink alum T. Arthur Cottam's DIRTY WORDS: THE LETTER C!

More info and tickets: right here!

Then, at 9 PM, it's VIVA, the sordid tale of a bored housewife who gets swept up in the sexual revolution, a highly stylized film that draws on classic exploitation cinema for its look, characters and story-line. Saturated to the hilt with vibrant color and exquisitely detailed in its depiction of the period and the genre, it follows the adventures of Barbi who, abandoned by her perfect Ken-doll husband, is dragged out on the town and into trouble by her "women's lib"-spouting girlfriend. An innocent in a sea of wolves, Barbi becomes "Viva" and quickly learns a lot more than she ever thought she wanted to know about the wild 1970s - nudists, swingers, hippies, orgies and lesbians - oh, my!

More info and tickets - and check out that trailer!

CineKink kicks off... Tuesday!

Put on your shiny finery and come help us kick off the fifth annual CineKink NYC in proper style!

A pansexual celebration of epic proportions, in addition to music, performances, free cocktails and a kinky fundraising raffle, our opening night gala will feature screenings of these special cinematic wonders:

SCHWARZWALD
A rich, modern tapestry combining elements of Druidic ritual with the passionate, leather-clad goings-on that transpire at NYC's annual Black Party, Schwarzwald follows the travails of the Black Prince as he is pursued through the woods and kidnapped by the nefarious underlings of the conniving Black Queen. Starring Buck Angel, the world famous female-to-male transsexual porn star, along with a cast of literal thousands, this is a sumptuous visual feast. And, featuring a continuous mix of music, truly the movie you can dance to! (Or not - remember, "whatever you're into!")











plus!
TEAM QUEEN
The best of New York burlesque in a gender-bending, fire-breathing, tassel-twirling, post-punk rock 'n roll prom!









and

A DOG'S TALE
Sensuous and layered, a black-and-white reverie on control and submission, longing and desire.









Featured performers for the evening include:

Dizzy Swank - putting the burly in burlesque !!!
JZ Bich – gender queer diva !!!
Ignacio Rivera – artist & activist !!!
Cherry Bomb – the queen of cream !!!
Jessica Delfino - ribald chanteuse !!!


Plus, a special raffle to benefit the National Coalition for Sexual Freedom!

Prizes include:
* An exclusive Schwarzald-edition ticket package to the Black Party!

* Complimentary weekend registration for Dark Odyssey's upcoming WinterFire!


Tuesday, February 26th - 8:00 pm

Location:
Taj, 48 West 21st Street, NYC

Admission:
$20 door/$15 advance; students/seniors $12, advance only.

More info & tickets are here!

The Sissies ride again!

Nearing the end of our count-down of CineKink trailers redux, we'd be most remiss to overlook these petticoated crowd-pleasers!



From CineKink NYC 2006, again our many thanks to on-screen phenoms - Sissy Carol, Sissy Stephanie and Sissy Terri - and to the editorial genius, Steve Ovenden, for bringing our tender creative visions into such vivid existence.

And perhaps at CineKink NYC 2008, a chance to see the Sissies again - but this time as celebrities in our midst?

Happy Valentine's Day, you hora!

As we continue to count down the trailers to CineKink NYC 2008, this entry, You, Hora!, is from "the wedding year" series of 2005. Also referred to by our sometimes better half as "the year you kinda just phoned in the trailers."

Hey, you try to plan a wedding and a film festival to fall within six weeks of each other!

We are on!

We'll check in again with even more detail on this year's wham bam program schedule for Cinekink NYC, but here's an overview to get you salivating:

Tuesday, February 26
8:00 pm - Kick-Off Gala & Opening Night Screening

Wednesday, February 27
7:00 pm - Shortbus Tribute Screening
9:00 pm - New York Stories

Thursday, February 28
7:00 pm - Triple X Selects: The Best of Leszploitation
9:00 pm - Viva

Friday, February 29
7:00 pm - Call Me Troy
9:15 pm - Susan for Now
11:15 pm - Sex Mannequin & Superfreak

Saturday, March 1
1:00 pm - Lust, Animation!
3:00 pm - Chick Flicks
5:00 pm - Women Behind the Lens
7:00 pm - Mix, Match & Mingle
9:00 pm - Give & Take
11:00 pm - The Three Trials

Sunday, March 2
1:00 pm - Annie Sprinkle's Herstory of Porn
3:00 pm - Sunday How-To Sex-O-Rama
5:00 pm - Silken Sleeves

6:30 pm - Awards Celebration
8:30 pm - AfterGlow!

Overwhelmed by indecision in the face of so many kinky cinematic possibilties? Give yourself over to our CineKink NYC All-Access Pass and prepare to submit completely!

Don't we deserve the truth?!?

In honor of Super Duper Tuesday, today's selection from the CineKink trailer archives dates back to those heady, hopeful days of 2004...



Vote early and vote often!

Counting down with the classics

As we count down the days until the premiere of CineKink NYC Trailer 2008, we thought we'd dip into the archives and share a few classics. Starting with the beginning...



Where'd that pudding-wrangler get to?!?

Here we are!

As you're hopefully well aware by now, CineKink NYC is getting set for its fifth annual appearance February 26-March 2, 2008, again bringing you a specially-curated program of films and videos that celebrate and explore a wide diversity of sexuality.

While we fine-tune and finesse the last details of the program line-up, to be announced next week, be sure to block out your calendar so you don't miss a single second of the CineKinky wonders!

Tuesday, February 26
8 pm - Kick-Off Gala & Opening Night Screening

2/27 - 7 pm/Screenings @ Anthology
2/28 - 7 pm/Screenings @ Anthology
2/29 - 7 pm/Screenings @ Anthology
3/1 - 1 pm/Screenings @ Anthology
3/2 - 1 pm/Screenings @ Pioneer(!)

Sunday, March 2
7 pm - Awards Celebration
9 pm - AfterGlow


Alright... back at it!

So... about Vegas.

In the midst of frenzied holiday preparations, who doesn't love an excuse to spend a few days holed away in Las Vegas-adjacent luxury? But even better, for the finite (albeit quickly growing) subset of the species dedicated to furthering humanity by producing film festivals, is the opportunity to hob-nob with one's like-minded (well..) industry peers. And, even more better, for those of us toiling away at what might be known as a niche film festival, is discovering others who are enjoying very much the same pains and pleasures along the way.

So we were delighted to find ourselves once again at the International Film Festival Summit and even more delighted to be included on the panel "Know Your Niche: The Key to Genre Film Festivals." Also doing the honors on the dias were moderator Jennifer Morris of Frameline, along with Andrew Migliore of the H.P. Lovecraft Film Festival and Zompire: the Undead Film Festival and Rachel Belofsky of the Screamfest Horror Film Festival.

Sex or horror, besides demonstrating that the perceived extremes are represented by some of the nicest people in existence - ridiculously nice, polite even, ourselves included - we had the chance to touch upon the peculiar challenges that come up in producing a niche festival; securing sponsors in a timid corporate environment, explaining ourselves to largely uncomprehending media and getting the word out to often elusive targets. And also the pay-offs; being immersed in our passions, bringing together a community, connecting filmmakers to audience and watching both thrive.

And here you thought it was the money...

If it's Monday, this must be Vegas...

Absolutely work-safe and not at all CineKinky, we're just happy to have made it out of the snow and away from O'Hare airport, all settled in to a king-sized bed for the International Film Festival Summit.

Just remember - what happens in Henderson, stays in Henderson.

Hey, Chicago!

Come out and join us this week as the Leather Archives & Museum presents CineKink: Chicago, running November 29th -December 1st with a three-night stand of films and videos that celebrate and explore a wide diversity of sexuality.

Presented by the Leather Archives & Museum, works presented will range from documentary to drama, mildly spicy to quite provocative - and everything in between:

November 29 - 7 pm/Vice & Consent (w/The Line Between)
November 29 - 9 pm/Going Under
November 30 - 7 pm/Power Plays
November 30 - 9 pm/Passion Plays
December 1 - *6 pm/Liberty in Restraint
December 1 - *8 pm/The Best of CineKink

For more information, the full festival line-up and advance tickets/passes, go here!

The last-call last call

Like many of you, we were a little startled to awaken to the fact that it's already mid-November. Thusly, to accommodate the usual assortment of well-meaning procrastinators, those of us who might wish to buy a little extra time, the last call for entries to CineKink NYC has been extended, with a new final/final (really!) deadline set for Monday, November 26th. (Really!)

Cutting across orientations, topics covered at CineKink have included - but are by no means limited to - BDSM, leather and fetish, swinging, non-monogamy and polyamory, roleplay and gender bending. Or, frankly, given the current moralistic climate, as long as it involves consenting adults, just about anything celebrating sex as a right of self-expression is welcome for consideration. (Far be it from us to define "kink" - if you think your work might make sense in this context, please send it along!)

Scheduled for its fifth annual appearance February 26-March 2, 2008, the specially curated CineKink NYC will also feature a short film competition, audience choice awards, presentations, parties and a gala kick-off, with a national screening tour to follow.

For more information and to download an entry form, check in here!

Showbears!

In this latest from CineKink alum, David Quantic, follow the cut-throat auditions for Showbears, just one of several fantastical cinema-to-Broadway offerings in the works:



Once you're there, rummage around David's YouTube for the rest in his series of trailers for the Seattle Lesbian and Gay Film Festival - and then be sure to set your sights on the wonders of his Eargasm (CineKink/2005).

Submit to CineKink!

CineKink is seeking films and videos, of any length and genre, that explore and celebrate the wide diversity of sexuality. We're looking to blur some boundaries and will be considering offerings drawn from both Hollywood and beyond, explicit or not, with works ranging from documentary to drama, camp comedy to hot porn - and everything in between.

Cutting across orientations, topics covered at CineKink have included — but are by no means limited to — BDSM, leather and fetish, swinging, non-monogamy and polyamory, roleplay and gender bending. Or, frankly, given the current moralistic climate, as long as it involves consenting adults, just about anything celebrating sex as a right of self expression. (Far be it from us to define “kink” — if you think your work might make sense in this context, please send it along!)

Scheduled for its fifth annual appearance February 26-March 2, 2008, the specially-curated CineKink NYC will also feature a short film competition, audience choice awards, presentations, parties and a gala kick-off, with a national screening tour to follow.

Film and video submissions have an early, discounted deadline of October 15, 2007 and a final deadline of November 15, 2007.

For more information and to download an entry form, go here!

Pick me, pick me!

It's perhaps not the same level of trepidation that used to descend as the teams were divvied up for sixth-grade slaughter-ball, but we had a wonderful time at SXSW last year and we'd love to ensure our return in 2008. To that end, we've suggested a panel discussion for the festival, inclusion of which will be partially determined by the results of the SXSW Panel Picker, which is live and online now! (Pick me, pick me!)

Inspired by the cheerful oblivion to current and pending restrictions on sexual content demonstrated by most non-porn media makers, we've proposed:

The Porn Police: Know the Rules
Already draconian regulations on depictions of sexually explicit conduct were recently revised and now apply to an even wider class of media makers. Not just pornographers, but anyone creating and working with explicit imagery, bloggers, webmasters, narrative filmmakers, documentarians; need to know the rules and the risks.

Last year we noted SXSW's sex-positive inclusivity and the possibilities for this one again look promising. While you're in the picker giving us your vote, also give a nod to:

Violet Blue -
Sexual Privacy Online

Deb Levine -
Online Sex Advice

Cory Silverberg -
The Future of Sex in Interactive Narrative and When No Means 01001: Sexual Ethics and Interactivity

Elizabeth Wood -
Pink Ghetto Blasters: Destigmatizing Sex via Online Community Building

But don't forget to pick me, pick me!

Pain, passion and the old grey lady.

Catching up with an article by ST VanAirsdale in today's New York Times entitled "Passion for Film Spurs New Festivals, but Grueling Work Keeps Them Going," we find ourselves staring off at the wall and nodding in mute agreement. Running a film festival is haaaard. (Though, we must admit, not nearly as hard as the mind numbingly week-upon-week "temp" data entry gig we once endured.)

An interesting overview of how the festival circuit has come to replace traditional distribution for many independent filmmakers, the article also touches upon the reward that - for us, anyway - helps propel us forward, the pleasure of connecting a work with its perfect audience.

For low-budget filmmakers New York festivals allow them to get their passion projects in front of committed moviegoers, all at an average cost of $40 per submission. Genre directors once banished to larger fests’ midnight-movie ghettos have flourishing outlets like the NYC Horror Film Festival or the sexually themed CineKink. Foreign-language works reach viewers at Polish, Cuban, Korean, Brazilian and other specialized series.

Coming up on our fifth go-round in February - slogging away, working so diligently these many years - we've often claimed that we "eat their mid-night movies for breakfast." It's delightful to have the old grey lady finally take notice.

Joanna Angel wants you to submit! (Seriously, she does.)

The deadline to submit your works to CineKink-partner, the Los Angeles Erotica Film Fest, is coming up fast.

So, either do it for Joanna - or do it for us - but do it now!

See you in Tinseltown!

Pack your bags and dust off your headshots, then make plans to join us in Hollywood, as we hook up with the Los Angeles Erotica Film Fest, a brand-new event that debuts in September.

Produced by XFANZ, the goal of LAEFF is to create "a dynamic forum where filmmakers, industry professionals and fans can gather to enjoy and discuss films that push the boundaries of eroticism." That all sounds great by us and we're proud to be on board as an official festival partner. It's been exciting to see the boundaries between the different film worlds begin to merge over the past couple of years and LAEFF is a very welcome new ally in encouraging even more of that.

Scheduled for September 15-16 at Hollywood's Knitting Factory, the event will present short and feature-length erotic films from fans around the world, as well as from within the adult industry.

But if you'd like to have your own work considered, you'd better act soon - or, as we like to say, submit now!

The deadline is coming up fast... August 15th.

Save the Dates - CineKink NYC!!

Alright, you can stop holding your breath now, your anxious anticipation is over. We're delighted to announce that our anchor event, CineKink NYC, will be moving out of the glutted fall cultural season and leaping into February - yep, it's a leap year - in our fifth annual(ish) appearance.

Get ready to jump along with us, February 26 - March 2, 2008, when we present a specially-curated program of films and videos that celebrate and explore a wide diversity of sexuality. In addition to screenings, plans also include a short film competition, awards, panels, parties and a gala kick-off fundraiser.

CineKink is currently inviting sponsors to come on board for the festival and a call for entries will go out shortly. If you're not receiving our regular updates, be sure to sign up here to get all the latest information.

Meanwhile, mark your calendars... February 26-March 2, 2008 !!!